Young Hearts
by Growly Genet
Summary: It's the darkness in our hearts that makes us what we are, Double-D. You'll see. It'll swallow you someday... just like it did to me...


Young Hearts

Summary: "It's the darkness in our hearts that makes us what we are, Double-D. You'll see. It'll swallow you someday... just like it did to me..."

Notes: "Young Hearts" is a dark story. At its core, it explores the things that make us what we are. Don't be fooled by the first few chapters, it primarily revolves around Double-D, Eddy and to an extent Jonny, but it features all of the cul de sac kids. This is not a story for the faint of heart. Pairings will be forthcoming - but expect slash, of the Eddy/Edd variety, at the very least.

*01 - Bruised Hearts*

School had just begun for the cul-de-sac residents and, as always, it  
led to the usual reordering of friendships and rivalries. There were  
newcomers that had to be sized up and let into existing circles – or  
form their own. Then there were the kids for whom this entire ritual  
was old-hat.

It was Kevin's freshman year in high school. As the oldest male (non-  
adult – that is) resident of the cul-de-sac, it was also his duty to  
be the coolest and set an example for the younger ones. He liked to  
think he'd done a pretty good job over the summer months – although  
there WERE a couple of folks who were willing to debate that fact  
(and loudly).

Not many residents took Eddy very seriously however, and since Jimmy  
was barely six and already starting to develop "sissy" tendencies,  
Kevin felt fairly comfortable ignoring his existence entirely.  
His "group" consisted of himself and nine-year-old (going on ten)  
Jonny. And if a nine-year-old was a bit young to be in the company  
of a teenager, well, Kevin was never really sure whether it was  
because of his innate "coolness" or simply overblown hero-worship.

One thing was for sure, as far as little Jonny was concerned, Kevin's  
word was law. He trailed along after the older boy like an eager  
puppy, and Kevin was never hesitant to dispense advice and even play  
games with the kid – as long as none of the "cool" kids were around  
to witness it.

The start of high school though… now that was a big occasion. Of  
course, Kevin was prepared well ahead of time. He leaned against the  
corner of his house, smiling at the way that his bike shined in the  
sun. It was brand new, perfect for making a good first impression on  
his fellow students.

"Hiya, Kevin!" The familiar voice rang out. The redhead turned,  
already grinning as the younger boy ran up to greet him. "Nice  
wheels!"

"Heya Jonny." He casually twisted his hat back to front so his bangs  
stuck out the hole. Yeah, that was cooler than wearing it the normal  
way.

"Are you gonna walk to school with me?" Jonny asked, smiling widely.

Kevin waffled for a moment or two – but in the end, there could be no  
question as to his answer. "Sorry, Jonny. I can't. My classes  
start earlier than yours." Such were the trials of being in high  
school.

The boy nodded, understanding his older friend's dilemma. "It's ok,  
Kevin. But we'll walk home together, right?" He rocked back and  
forth eagerly, already knowing what the response would be.

"Of course. I'll even give you a lift with my new wheels."

"You're the coolest, Kevin!"

Raising his chin slightly, Kevin smiled, "Yeah, I know."

The first day of school was always an important time. There was so  
much to be done, like figuring out which teachers were likely to let  
you get away with stuff and which would probably throw you in  
detention the first chance they got. And of course, the real biggie,  
finding the crowd you wanted to hang with. There were all kinds and  
they didn't overlap very frequently.

It was a little bit like birds, Kevin thought as he watched the  
others and ate his lunch. Geeks flocked with other geeks; the Goth  
types hung out together – or more frequently alone in dark places.  
The jocks were always to be found near the locker rooms, while the  
teachers' pets spent most of the time in the classrooms.

Kevin had already figured out where he wanted to be, though. There  
was a group of kids who seemed to personify the word "hip" and they  
were sitting only a few tables away. Their leader was a tall, black-  
haired kid. He already knew the guy's name too: Brad. All he needed  
to do was get in with Brad's crew and BOOM! Instant "cool" label.

Finishing up his sandwich, he crumpled up the paper bag it had been  
in with one hand and tossed it at the trashcan some distance away.  
Score! A perfect shot!

As he headed back out into the hallway, he noticed that he was being  
followed. He stopped in his tracks, then slowly turned to face the  
approaching teens, trying to look nonchalant as they approached him.  
He recognized Brad's crew and knew he had to do his best to play it  
cool.

The senior approached, stopping just a few feet away from the orange-  
haired teen and leaning casually against the lockers. "Me and my  
crew have been watching you. I like your style, kid. You've got  
class. What's your name?"

Scarcely believing his luck, the young redhead managed to answer the  
question without stammering too badly. "It's… it's Kevin."

"Well, Kev," The dark-haired teen cut in smoothly. "My boys and I  
were thinking you might make a worthy addition to our crew. We're  
gonna give you a chance to prove that you're good enough to join us.  
What do you say?"

"Sure!" There was no hesitation in his answer this time. It was just  
the opportunity he had been waiting for.

"All right, then." Brad clapped a hand across Kevin's shoulders,  
nearly making the younger teen stagger forward. "We'll be waiting  
out front after school. Don't be late."

Kevin grinned widely, "Oh, I won't."

"Kevin!" The orange-haired teen was so geared for his after school  
meeting with Brad and his crew that for a moment he was convinced  
that the breathless, panting voice he'd hear belonged to the black-  
haired senior rather than an exhausted and still eager Jonny.

"Heya, Jonny. What's up man?" He responded, hoping he sounded cool  
rather than awkward.

The younger boy stopped and blinked, tilting his head to one side as  
if considering Kevin's words. "Man?" A soft giggled followed his  
chimed response. "Why're you talking funny, Kevin?" Jonny's tone  
was one of amused curiosity, as if he was trying to figure out what  
new game his older companion was trying to play.

"I'm not talking funny, Jonny!" Kevin began, more than a little  
miffed by his young friend's trademark candor. "This is just how  
cool kids talk."

A wide smile spread over Jonny's face, "Yeah, you are the coolest,  
Kevin!"

"Well, well… what have we here?" Both Jonny and Kevin turned as Brad  
smooth voice cut in. "Is this kid a friend of yours, Kev?"

Whatever else he might be, Kevin was no fool. He could read the  
question beneath the one that had been asked. Of course… it was  
obvious that hanging out with an elementary school kid could hardly  
be considered hip, and Jonny in particular was so far from fitting  
that description that he didn't belong in the same CITY as these  
other boys, much less the same crew.

As usual, Jonny was quicker to the punch than he was. "I'm Jonny.  
Kevin's my best friend!"

The orange-haired teen watched the shifting expressions on Brad's  
face with a bit of apprehension. He was so screwed! If only he  
hadn't told Jonny he'd give him a ride home today!

A hand on his arm, tugging him aside, startled him. So did Brad's  
voice hissing in his ear. "We can't have… that… hanging around with  
us. If you really want to be one of us, get rid of him!" It was not a  
request. It wasn't even a command. It was an ultimatum.

His gaze slid to Jonny who was looking in his direction with a slight  
smile, obviously he hadn't heard Brad's words. Noticing Kevin  
looking at him, the younger boy waved cheerfully, a move Kevin could  
only answer with a small sickly-looking smile of his own.

Get rid of Jonny? He wasn't sure he could, but under the watchful  
eyes of Brad and his crew he was virtually helpless to do otherwise.  
If he stood up for Jonny now his career as a cool kid would be over  
before it began…

"Jonny…" He almost sighed as the younger boy ran up to him eagerly.

"Yeah, Kevin?" The guileless expression on the nine-year-old's face  
made Kevin pause again, unsure what to say.

The sound of Brad clearing his throat spurred Kevin to immediate and  
desperate action. He looked down at Jonny and forced a sneer onto  
his face. "Get out of here, kid. I don't need brats like you  
hanging around!"

For a moment the words hung in the air and it was like Jonny hadn't  
even heard them. Then slowly his smile melted into a puzzled  
expression. "Kevin?" The older boy recognized that tone, it was the  
one Jonny used when he meant `You're putting me on, aren't you?'

He considered taking the words back, laughing them off. It would be  
simplicity itself to tell Jonny that he'd been kidding and – knowing  
the smaller boy – he would have been believed without question. Yet,  
it was impossible by this point. He was in too deep to wimp out now.

"You heard me! I'm through hanging around with losers like you!"  
The harshness of his own words startled him beyond belief; mentally  
he was already apologizing to his young friend. `Sorry, Jonny… but  
this is how it has to be. It's hurting me more than it's hurting  
you…'

The puzzled look had deepened and Jonny spoke again. "Kevin?" It was  
the same word, the same name, but now Jonny's voice held a note of  
desperate pleading. Kevin thought he knew what the boy was really  
saying – he'd been around Jonny long enough.

What he was saying was, `Tell me you're joking, Kevin. You can't mean  
it because you're my best friend, right?' or perhaps he was wondering  
if he'd done something to make Kevin mad at him.

Kevin felt Jonny's hand snatch at his sleeve, tugging at it like a  
little kid seeking reassurance. His muddled, conflicting thoughts  
reached a desperate peak, and without even realizing he was doing it,  
he reached out and shoved Jonny away vehemently.

"Don't touch me!"

The smaller boy stumbled back, unprepared for the blow. The others  
cleared away with a speed that was remarkable, none of them bothering  
to try and help.

The loud clang of something hitting metal brought Kevin back to  
himself. His eyes flew wide as he saw Jonny crumpled on the ground  
next to one of the large metal dumpsters outside of the school. His  
impromptu push had knocked the younger boy into it, hard and  
headfirst. He would have gone to Jonny's side if Brad hadn't wrapped  
a comradely arm around his shoulder and led him off to one side.

"Good work, Kev. Very well done. It seems you're just the sort of  
fellow we've been looking for."

"But…" Kevin began, only to be cut off again by Brad's slightly  
annoyed look in his direction. The message was clear: `Don't  
question me.' The others in Brad's group came running up after them,  
and he wondered for a brief moment what they'd been up to, hanging  
back for so long.

He put the thought from his mind without dedicating much time to it.  
When it came right down to it, he didn't think he wanted to  
know. `You're a coward, Kev…' He told himself. The worst thing was…  
he thought that just maybe he could live with being that way.

"Let's stuff him in the dumpster, Ted!" The voice cut through the  
haze surrounding Jonny like a hot knife, sending waves of pain  
through his head. He whimpered softly, trying to lift his head and  
almost screaming with the agony it caused. Then a hand snatched him  
up by the front of his shirt.

"I don't know, Pat…" The second voice sounded a bit nervous. "I mean,  
he hit that dumpster pretty hard…"

"Don't wimp out on me now, pal," The one who'd picked Jonny up  
laughed cruelly.

"I'm not!" Ted growled in reply, stung by the remark. "But look at  
him, he's bleeding all over the place."

"It's just a stupid nosebleed."

"Then why is his ear bleeding too? I think we should leave him out  
here where someone might find him…"

"Bah. You're a coward, Ted." Jonny was hoisted higher, his voice  
finally emerging as a strangled half-yelp. The one carrying him took  
no mind, if anything the sound seemed to amuse him more. For a  
moment there was only vertigo as he was swung through the air like a  
sack of potatoes. Then he was sinking into a sticky, slimy mass of…  
something.

It was all around him, trying to swallow him up. He could feel  
something wriggling against his cheek, and he squirmed, unable to get  
up. Every movement only drove him deeper into the rubble beneath  
him. A strangled wail escaped his throat, cut off as something cold  
and slimy and MOVING slid into his mouth, sending him into coughing  
fits as he fought to get it away from him. He knew what the moving  
things were now. They were maggots. Stinking, crawling, gross  
maggots all over him, touching him, trying to consume him.

"No! Leave me alone!' The words were half-muffled by the gunk against  
his mouth, but his struggles and cries were all for naught. Who was  
there to help him? Kevin? But no… hadn't Kevin said he shouldn't  
bother him anymore?

`What did I do wrong?' The frightened and muddled boy couldn't make  
sense of what had happened. `We were best friends this morning. What  
happened?' Exhaustion was overtaking him quickly and he lapsed into  
silence, his struggles weakening then stopping entirely. What if no  
one found him in here…?

"Jonny…"

"…wha…?" A soft noise of puzzlement escaped his throat as he thought  
he heard someone calling his name. "Who's there?" `Silly! You're  
just imagining things, there's no one he-'

"Jonny."

His eyes flew wide, a burst of strength flying through his limbs.  
Not much, but enough to allow him to push himself up on his hands and  
knees and look around. His head was still swimming from the blow,  
and the colors seemed to run together, making it difficult to find  
the speaker. "Where are you?"

"Here I am, Jonny." His hands brushed something hard, and he tugged  
at it, his fingers closing over smooth wood. He managed to extract  
it with some difficulty and found himself staring down at a length of  
board with an odd face painted on it. It seemed to him that it was  
smiling mysteriously.

Brushing some of the slime from its surface, he asked again, "Who are  
you?"

"Your friend." It replied, enigmatically. Yet it was impossible not  
to believe the things it offered. "One who won't leave you by  
yourself, or call you terrible names. Just what you were looking  
for, wasn't it?"

"Yes." Jonny's voice was faint, and he clung tightly to the board,  
clutching it to his chest. "But you haven't told me your name…" The  
whispery voice filled his ears, and his eyes went wide. Then slowly,  
a smile spread over his face. "Yes… I see…"

Kevin stared up at the ceiling, lying flat on his back on his bed.  
He couldn't get the expression on Jonny's face out of his head. It  
refused to budge, and for every second that passed he felt the cold  
chains of guilt wrapping ever more tightly around him. Finally, he  
got to his feet, running his hands through his hair with a disgusted  
sigh. "Fine. I'll go apologize." He told his niggling conscience,  
hoping it would shut up.

Pulling on his baseball cap, he left his room. His feet dragged the  
entire way as he headed down the street towards Jonny's house. They  
wanted as little to do with this potentially embarrassing (and  
painful) apology as he did. He hadn't even seen Jonny all day… but  
since no one had come to his house in accusation, it must have just  
been that the younger boy was upset about the encounter earlier.

`With good cause,' His conscience pointed out nastily. `After all,  
you did push him into a dumpster and call him a loser. You could  
hardly expect him to be thrilled with you.'

`Shut up.' He told the mental voice, firmly as he reached the  
outskirts of Jonny's yard. It obeyed for once, quieting down  
immediately as he drew to a startled halt. Jonny was outside,  
sitting beneath a tree and looking through a book with a large smile  
on his face. It was as if nothing was bothering him whatsoever. He  
even looked up as Kevin approached.

"Hiya, Kevin!" He called out cheerfully. For a moment the redhead  
had the oddest sensation that he was trapped in the Twilight Zone.  
Far from being angry, Jonny seemed thrilled to see him. "What are  
you doing over here?'

"I came to um…" He faltered briefly at the wide smile on Jonny's  
face. "I came to apologize, Jonny."

"Apologize?" Confusion crossed the younger boy's features. "For  
what?" As he shifted slightly, Kevin saw something sitting in his  
lap, and he frowned.

"Um… what is that, Jonny?" It looked like a board…

"Oh! Did I forget to introduce you? This is my best friend, Plank!  
Plank, this is Kevin!" The boy tilted his head slightly. "Plank is  
pleased to meet you, Kevin." Then he smiled, that overly large,  
somehow vacuous smile that he'd used upon seeing Kevin. Now the teen  
found it somehow disturbing.

`Something's not right here…' He backed up a step, not nervous so  
much as roiling with confusion. `And I don't know what it is. But  
this morning I was his best friend, and now I've been replaced with…  
what? A board? With a smiley face painted on it, no less. It's just  
not right.'

"Now, what were you saying you came over for?" Jonny inquired  
innocently.

"N…nothing." Kevin's eyes narrowed as he looked at the board in  
Jonny's lap. The wide smiley-face on it seemed to be mocking  
him. "Nothing at all." Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he  
slunk slowly away towards his house.

Behind him he could hear Jonny, still having a one-sided conversation  
with "Plank". "No, he's not normally like that. Kevin's cool." A  
long pause. "Gee thanks, I love you too, buddy."

Kevin's hands clenched into fists, and he was tempted to sulk until  
the annoying voice of conscience butted in again. `You reap what you  
sow, Kevin. Remember that.' It sounded remarkably like his father.

"Shut up." He mumbled aloud, leaning against a tree about halfway  
between his house and Jonny's. Crossing his arms in front of his  
chest, he let himself slide to the ground to sit cross-legged in the  
shade. "I don't need you to tell me that. I'm one of the cool kids  
now, anyway."

`It was worth it,' He told himself fiercely, although his gaze slid  
back in the direction of Jonny's house. `It was…'

*01 Fin*


End file.
